Protecting Interior Wood on 2018 R-27 OB

[O'RION]

The maintenance people at our marina were impressed with the interior of our new R-27 OB, but said that the interior wood appears not to be finished and recommended that to protect it from future weathering it be sanded and varnished. Any thoughts on this?

 

[ixlr8]

My dealer said to just put Teak oil on the wood. Sanding and Varnishing, done right, is a lot of work but looks sharp. If you do varnish, a Matte finish will be much more forgiving than doing a gloss finish. My job involves building boats and I have spent some time in the varnish shop. I think we will be doing Teak Oil in our boat.. unless my first mate decides differently. If you do one, T oil or Varnish, you can't do the other with out LOTS and LOTS of work.

 

[Red Raven]

The maintenance people at our marina were impressed with the interior of our new R-27 OB, but said that the interior wood appears not to be finished and recommended that to protect it from future weathering it be sanded and varnished. Any thoughts on this?

I agree with ixlr8. There is a long history of using teak with an oil finish on boats and for a good reason. It lasts a long...long time with very little maintenance required. The problem with varnish and other finishes is that when they do need refinishing it is a huge job. With oiled teak you just wipe a fresh coat of oil on and you are good to go. No sanding, no scraping, nothing but teak oil. As with everything there are some cons, most notably, stains, if you spill something and let it sit, it can make a nasty stain. use care to not let wet or dirty oily items touch the wood.

There are locations where varnish (or other shiny sealant) is warranted and most those areas are likely already finished as such on your boat. In the remaining areas I do not recommend sanding and varnishing. Enjoy the natural wood!

Curt

 

[PetDrs]

.......I do not recommend sanding and varnishing. Enjoy the natural wood!

Amen to that!!

I agree completely. Enjoy your time using your boat, instead of time spent in the never ending cycle of sanding and revarnishing! I made that mistake once and will NEVER do that again. Lesson learned the hard way! :cry:

Cheers

 

[captstu]

My R-25 lives in South Florida where we continuously fight mold. I bleached the teak clean with oxalc acid, re-stained it, and applied several coats of satin varnish. Touch it up yearly.

It looks ok, not much better or worse than oil.

It is easy to keep clean and mold free. We also dehumidify 24/7 with a small air conditioner mounted on the roof.

The allergy conditions drove us to do this on our last two boats, not so hard and it makes boating possible for us.


Stuart Bell
Ranger 25: Shearwater
(561) 352-1796

 

[baz]

I 100% agree with Jim's advice. 🙂

 

[Brian B]

We use Pledge Restore and Shine with orange oil. Very easy to apply and will last a boating season. Personally I would not go the varnish route, as others have said it will be constant work to keep it up. Imagine the dust from sanding all over the interior of the boat. :cry:

 

[trailertrawlerkismet]

Like Brian we’ve used the Pledge oil on two boats over 7 years. Once per year spray onto a rag and wipe into the wood and you’re good to go.

Jim F

 

[knotflying]

Ditto Jim & Brian Pledge oil. I have also used Star Brite teak oil.

 

[O'RION]

Thanks to everyone for your replies. I think I will go the Pledge or teak oil route.

 

[ixlr8]

Thanks to everyone for your replies. I think I will go the Pledge or teak oil route.

I think that is a wise choice. If there was any doubt, this might do it.

Here is the procedure we do for varnishing the wood for the boat I work on.
1- sand all wood with 220 grit sandpaper.
2- sand all wood with 320 grit
3- vacuum up all saw dust
4- wipe all wood down with rag wetted with denatured alcohol.
5- wipe all wood with "tack" cloth
6- Coat all wood with Epifanes Rapid Clear sealer/varnish.
7- Repeat steps 2-6
8- Repeat steps 2-5 then coat all wood with Epifanes Matte Varnish thinned 10%.
9- Repeat steps 2-5 then coat all wood with Epifanes Matte Varnish thinned 5%.
Repeat step 9 every 3-5 years.

Here is a link if you want to see the interior of the boat we build. It looks great but is a LOT of work. We have 2 guys in our varnish shop and they only work on the wood for this one model boat. We build 2 per year. Our other models are done at a different site.
https://www.sabreyachts.com/dirigo-66-motoryacht/salon-express-66

 

[Jfrano]

When using the Pledge Restore and Shine with orange oil, is that in place of teak oil?

Thanks
Joe

 

[BaylorU]

Hey Jim is that Sabre for sale? I think I’d like to buy it....I just need to round up a few hundred friends to go in on it with me.
WOW! That is one of the most beautiful boats I’ve ever seen!!!

 

[ixlr8]

Hey Jim is that Sabre for sale? I think I’d like to buy it....I just need to round up a few hundred friends to go in on it with me.
WOW! That is one of the most beautiful boats I’ve ever seen!!!

That is boat #1 and it is not for sale. The owner single hands the boat and uses it to commute to work. Boat #3 is a flybridge model, used, it is for sale for $4M. Presently the 66 line is sold out for the next 2 years. So if you want new, you are going to have to wait. Make sure your friends understand at economy cruise (26kts) the boat burns about 66 gallons per hour, at full throttle (34kts), it burns about 88 gallons per hr.